Making Sense of Change: Environmental Scan of Educational Resources for Children of Parents with Acquired Brain Injury and ways to empower parents to deliver this education

About the Project

People/organisations involved

Lead applicant

Nina Wegener, Senior Speech Pathologist, ABI Transitional Rehabilitation Service (ABI TRS), Metro South Health

Academic and research partners

Dr Ronelle Hewetson, Griffith University
Dr Christy Hogan, The Hopkins Centre

Clinical and research support

Sally Wooler, ABI TRS
Mandy Nielsen, ABI TRS
Jacqueline Byrne, ABI TRS

Aim and objectives

To identify and synthesise best-practice elements of child-focused psychoeducation for families where a parent has an acquired brain injury, and translate these into practical tools for clinicians.

• Review ABI TRS service records to understand current approaches to child-focused education.
• Conduct a review of published and grey literature on children’s psychoeducation following parental ABI.
• Triangulate findings to identify evidence-informed components across age groups.
• Develop a clinician guide and checklist to support development of personalised, age-appropriate resources for families.

Expected outcomes and impact

The project will deliver:

• A clinician guide and checklist to inform development of child-focused educational resources.
• Strengthened, evidence-informed service delivery within ABI TRS.
• Increased clinician confidence and consistency in supporting parenting goals following ABI.

In the longer term, the project will lay the groundwork for co-designing adaptable educational resources with parents and pursuing further funding to evaluate their acceptability and impact.

Project status and timeframe

Status: Commencing (ethics exemption to be finalised pre-project).
Duration: 6 months.

Timeline overview:

Months 1–2: Literature and resource review.
Months 3–4: Service record review and initial synthesis.
Month 5: Data triangulation.
Month 6: Development and refinement of clinician guide and checklist.